Salvator Aubrey Clarence Menen (22 April 1912 – 13 March 1989) was a British writer, novelist, satirist and theatre critic. Born in London, his essays and novels explore the nature of nationalism and the cultural contrast between his own Irish-Indian ancestry and his traditional British upbringing. The first sentence of "Dead Man in the Silver Market" offers an example of his good-humoured approach to this contentious topic: "Men of all races have always sought for a convincing explanation of their own astonishing excellence and they have frequently found what they were looking for."
Early life and education
Aubrey Menen was born in London in 1912 to Kali Narain Menon (also Kalipurayath Narayana Menon), "scion of a prominent Nayar family" of Indian
Malayali
The Malayali people () (also spelt Malayalee and also known by the demonym Keralite) are a Dravidian peoples, Dravidian ethnolinguistic group originating from the present-day state of Kerala in India, occupying its southwestern Malabar coast. ...
origin, and Alice Villet, an Englishwoman of Irish descent. Aubrey chose to change his surname's spelling, allegedly to avoid confusion with his friend
V. K. Krishna Menon
Vengalil Krishnan Krishna Menon (3 May 1896 – 6 October 1974) was an Indian academic, politician, and non-career diplomat. He was described by some as the second most powerful man in India, after the first Prime Minister of India, Jawa ...
. Menen was raised at
Islington
Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
. His mixed heritage was central to his career, and he often drew heavily on it in his writing.
He took a BA in Philosophy from
University College London
, mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £143 million (2020)
, budget = ...
(UCL) in 1932. Whilst at UCL, he founded a drama group, the London Student Players, writing, directing, and performing in their productions; he befriended
Duncan Grant
Duncan James Corrowr Grant (21 January 1885 – 8 May 1978) was a British painter and designer of textiles, pottery, theatre sets and costumes. He was a member of the Bloomsbury Group.
His father was Bartle Grant, a "poverty-stricken" major ...
, and commissioned him to design sets. Through Grant, Menen became acquainted with members of the
Bloomsbury Group
The Bloomsbury Group—or Bloomsbury Set—was a group of associated English writers, intellectuals, philosophers and artists in the first half of the 20th century, including Virginia Woolf, John Maynard Keynes, E. M. Forster and Lytton Strac ...
including
Virginia Woolf
Adeline Virginia Woolf (; ; 25 January 1882 28 March 1941) was an English writer, considered one of the most important modernist 20th-century authors and a pioneer in the use of stream of consciousness as a narrative device.
Woolf was born i ...
and
John Maynard Keynes
John Maynard Keynes, 1st Baron Keynes, ( ; 5 June 1883 – 21 April 1946), was an English economist whose ideas fundamentally changed the theory and practice of macroeconomics and the economic policies of governments. Originally trained in ...
.
Career
In 1932, having graduated from UCL, Menen became drama critic for '' The Bookman'' magazine, until, in 1934, serving as director of the Experimental Theatre in London until 1936. In 1933,
The Shape of Things to Come
''The Shape of Things to Come'' is a work of science fiction by British writer H. G. Wells, published in 1933. It takes the form of a future history which ends in 2106.
Synopsis
A long economic slump causes a major war that leaves Europe dev ...
'', which generated "considerable publicity". Menen's unconventional, boundary-pushing performances included production of politically-charged drama, his "radical plays... often fraught with controversy". He was sued for blasphemy and obscenity in 1934 in response to his play ''Genesis II'', based on an incident when UCL had rejected Menen for a bursary due to his Indian heritage. In 1939, he went to India, where he became a "leading personality" in radio; from 1948 to 1980, he lived in Italy, where he "flourished as a writer of both fiction and non-fiction" until returning to India, settling at Kerala, where he spent the rest of his life.
Menen's 1954 retelling of the classic Hindu epic ''
Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...
''- meant as a funny and readable version of the work- was banned in India for some years, as devout Hindus were horrified by the liberties Menen took with a sacred text.
Menen states that his goal is to, "aim at reviving," Valmiki's, "attitude of mind."Menen, Aubrey (1954). "Introduction", ''The Ramayana'', p.4. Charles Scribner's Sons: New York. . . . Menen's humor did not undercut his love for India, however, as can be seen in his book on Hindu mystics and his text to
Roloff Beny
Roloff Beny (1924–1984) was a Canadian photographer who spent the better part of his life in Rome and on his photographic travels throughout the world. Born Wilfred Roy Beny in Medicine Hat, Alberta, he later took as his first name ''Roloff'', ...
's great book of photographs of India (''India'', 1969).
Works
Novels
*''The Prevalence of Witches'' (1947)
*''The Stumbling-Stone'' (1949)
*''The Backward Bride: A Sicilian Scherzo'' (1950)
*''The Duke of Gallodoro'' (1952)
*''The Ramayana, As Told by Aubrey Menen'' (1954)
*''The Abode of Love: The Conception, Financing and Daily Routine of an English Harem in the Middle of the 19th Century'' (1956)
*''The Fig Tree'' (1959)
*''SheLa: A Satire'' (1962)
*''A Conspiracy of Women'' (1965)
*''Fonthill: A Comedy'' (1974)
Travel
*''Rome Revealed'' (1960)
*''Speaking the Language Like a Native'' (1962)
*''India'', with Roloff Beny (1969)
*''Upon This Rock'' (1972)
*''London'' (1976)
*''Venice'' (1976)
Other non-fiction
*''Dead Man in the Silver Market'' (1953)
*''The Space within the Heart'' (1970)
*''Cities in the Sand'' (1972)
*''The New Mystics and the True Indian Tradition'' (1974)
*''Four Days of Naples'' (1979)
*''Art and Money'' (1980)